This Life at 30: Producer Jane Fallon remembers beloved drama and reveals why she doubts it would happen today

This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.

There was clearly something in the waters of TV drama in early 1996. Hot on the heels of the 30th anniversary of Our Friends in the North two weeks ago, we must wish the same happy birthday to another equally memorable, era-defining show. This Life, a low-budget series about 20-something law graduates sharing a London house, became one of the most talked about titles of its day, and remains a reference point for all things cultural in the mid-90s.

Producer Jane Fallon was one of a young team assembled by legendary TV-maker Tony Garnett to bring to screen the script by Amy Jenkins. “We wanted to do something that hadn’t really been seen before,” Fallon remembers. “We wanted to be very naturalistic and avoid clichés, we wanted something a bit anarchic and different. We were fortunate that the budget was small — the BBC pretty much left us alone to get on with it.”

Casting of the main roles was key, with producers keen to find new young faces “with no baggage, not somebody we’d all seen on The Bill,” as Fallon puts it. Jason Hughes and Daniela Nardini were the first to be cast, as Warren and Anna.

The other parts took longer, with the production team auditioning hundreds of actors before landing on Jack Davenport as Miles, Amita Dhiri (Milly) and Andrew Lincoln (Egg). They then arranged for the chosen five to spend the week together. “We sent them bowling and to the pub so they could get to know each other. By the time we began to shoot, they were all really good friends.”

Filming took place in a terraced house in London’s Southwark Bridge Road, close to the the Thames. Fallon recalls a hive of activity, with everyone from accountants to set-builders crammed into the location. “The noise was crazy and we worked 12-hour days so there was a lot of stress, but it also felt we were all sharing in this huge adventure.”

One contributor was the then relatively unknown Ricky Gervais, Fallon’s partner, who was credited as music advisor for creating playlists for the characters. He also commissioned and produced the theme tune, an instant earworm by the band The Way Out.

Besides the strong characters, the sex and the bad language, what many people remember about This Life is the naturalistic camerawork, which was an innovation created from financial necessity. “We couldn’t afford several cameras,” says Fallon, “so we came up with the idea of putting one camera in the room and just finding whoever was talking. If we’d had more money, we wouldn’t have done it.”

Success was by no means guaranteed, with the first reviews harsh and the chance of being renewed for a second series very much in doubt. However, through word of mouth, the show became a sleeper hit, with around four million viewers tuning in for 1997’s series-two finale, hanging on to discover if Miles would end up with Anna, and if Milly would choose a fling with her boss over settling down with the more laid-back Egg.

There have been many other ensemble dramas in the 30 years since — This Life itself came back with a one-off reunion episode in 2007 — but Fallon doubts any similar show would appear these days: “It felt more like the Wild West in TV back then, a brief period of bravery for commissioners.”

However, having become a successful novelist with 14 bestsellers to her name, she’s clear what the whole experience of This Life taught her. “Just make the thing you want to make, whether that’s a book or a TV show. Don’t allow people to nitpick at what you’re doing because that kills any kind of creativity. Keep focus.”

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Daniela Nardini will introduce the start of a repeat run of This Life on Wednesday 18 March on BBC Four at 10pm, with both seasons 1 and 2 and the +10 year reunion special all available on iPlayer from 6am the same day.

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